


a peculiar little place called byulbit cafe

by byulbitpower



Category: K-pop, VIXX
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:35:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22186447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/byulbitpower/pseuds/byulbitpower
Summary: han sanghyuk, 21, tall, sporty, smart. a normal college student. however, everything changed one fateful evening when he stepped foot into a cafe he had never noticed before. he had always been too curious for his own good. "welcome to byulbit cafe." (inspired by hotel del luna and tokyo ghoul in a weird way lol)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 12





	1. has this always been here before?

"Woah... what the hell?" Sanghyuk stopped in his tracks, blinking widely at a shabby looking little shop that he swore hadn't existed until then. Rain poured down on his umbrella, and his friends called for him to hurry up. "Hey, what is that place?" He asked as he caught up to them, making puddles splash beneath his boots. 

"Hasn't that always been there? It's like some cafe that opens in the evening or something. Come on, we're gonna be late!" 

Sanghyuk and his dorm-mates hurried into class, shoulders damp and voices hushed as they rushed to their seats. Unfortunately for Sanghyuk's grades, he was not listening to the professor while the man droned on about some sort of theory that Sanghyuk had likely already read and memorized. There was a piece of paper that said "Help Wanted" on the wall of that shop... I'll check it out tonight. Could do with some part time cash. 

"Han Sanghyuk! Just because you are the top of your class, it doesn't mean you can daydream during class." Sanghyuk sat up straight with a sheepish smile and bowed his head in apology. 

7 PM

Sanghyuk stood in front of the shabby little shop, noting that the lights were dimly lit inside through the clouded windows. There was a small wall lamp next to the door, and a dark blue plaque with the words "Byulbit Cafe" etched into the surface with gold paint. What a curious place... The fact that he had never noticed it being open during the day was very curious indeed. He heard from his friends that this cafe only operated at night, starting from 6:20 PM. A peculiar time to open it's doors... He gently peeled the "Help Wanted" paper off, took a small breath, and pushed the door open. 

"Welcome to Byulbit Cafe." He was greeted by a gentle, deep voice, so deep that it took him off guard and had him looking around wildly until his eyes fell onto a man who had greying hair- no, his hair was dyed in a gradient from black to grey. His face was relatively young, possibly around Sanghyuk's age... a pair of round spectacles rested on his raised nose bridge, complimenting his slightly droopy eyes. Was that eyeliner he saw? "Are you alone?" The deep rumble of the man's voice reminded him that he was here to get a job, and he cleared his throat before introducing himself. 

"I saw that you were hiring? I haven't had much experience as a waiter, but I do learn fast." It was a rather boastful start, but Sanghyuk was not known to be too timid about his own achievements. This in turn caught the bespectacled man off guard, and a smirk crossed his lips. 

"You sound confident. It's a difficult job here, you know." His rumbling voice turned into almost a purr, and he gestured for the younger to follow him. "You'll have to see the owner for that. I'm only a mere waiter. My name is Ravi, by the way." The smirk turned into a small grin, and they stopped in front of another door in the back of the shop. Hyuk looked around in slight confusion, noting that the cafe had been open for almost an hour, yet there were no customers.

"Is business usually slow here?" Ravi raised a brow, looking around them and opened his mouth, only to stop himself and clear his throat.

"No, we have quite a few regulars." Strange answer to Sanghyuk's question, but this entire situation was already strange enough. What could go wrong at a small and cozy cafe? As Ravi raised a fist to knock, a ring glistened in the dim light and caught Sanghyuk's eye. It was silver, quite a noticeable size, with a dark purple jewel encrusted into the metal. Sanghyuk could almost swear there were clouds of lavender and magenta swirling inside it, but before he could ask or take a closer look, the door was creaked open after three gentle knocks. Wait... who opened it? 

"Yes, Ravi? If this is about Hongbin's escaped bodies, I will push you right out of this room--" A tall, slender, and tanned man turned away from a large mirror, his eyes widening in surprise and shoulders tensing warily. "... So I see this will become an interview. Welcome, uhm.." 

"Sanghyuk. Han Sanghyuk." 

"That's much too hard to remember, from now on your name is Hyuk. Welcome to Byulbit Cafe, congratulations, you are now our waiter in training!" A delicate hand reached out and took his own, shaking it energetically. It was a strange feeling since the man's skin felt oddly cold... He felt a shiver run down his spine, some red flags already going off in his head as he blinked in confusion. 

"Hired? I thought we were going to have an interv--" 

"No, no! You're perfectly suitable for this job, I'll get you a uniform, we should have some left that are in your size. Oh, and those shoes simply will not do, you'll have to purchase new--"

"N! He isn't... he's normal." The man called N, which in Sanghyuk's- Hyuk's opinion was a very strange name (not that Ravi's was any different), turned back to face them slowly and his eyebrows furrowed into the smallest hint of a frown. 

"... You're telling me he's a plain old human?" N approached the taller but younger boy and reached to take his chin into a hand, cold fingers squishing Hyuk's cheeks. His face was turned left and right, chin pulled down as the tanned man peered into his confused eyeballs. "Is he capable of seeing our guests?" Ravi shook his head in response, leaning himself lazily against N's desk and yawning. "Well then, that won't do, will it? Hyuk, do you have a strong sixth sense?" Hyuk's confusion turned into bewilderment and he pulled himself abruptly out of N's hand. 

"What do you mean 'seeing our guests'? Sixth sense?!" 

The next moment, N's chilly hand covered his eyes, and he felt a cloudiness fill his head. His legs buckled slightly, stumbling at the sudden dizziness. "W-what are you..." And the next second, all he saw was black as he fell into N's arms, and the last thing he heard was a small hushed chuckle. 


	2. am i the only human here?

"Awww, he's like a baby~!" A soft and high pitched voice cooed.

"We see some weird shit but if you ever actually see a six foot tall baby, let me know." This one sounded like Ravi.

"Shut up, you've woken him up!" That must be N.

Hyuk blinked open and sat up immediately, nearly colliding his head into a stranger he hadn't seen earlier. "What the fuck have you done to me?!" He whipped his head around towards N, his hands going up to clutch at his throbbing head. The strange man simply smiled, sitting down at his desk and crossing his fingers together as he shrugged nonchalantly. 

"You're our new staff!" 

"Waiter in training, Ken, and don't even think about pushing all your cleaning work onto him." The curly haired brunette, apparently named Ken, gave N a huge pout and slunk away into a corner of the other's office. 

"Hold on a second, you can't just appoint me your new staff without even explaining! You literally knocked me out!" Hyuk stood up and stormed over to the man's desk, and just before he could reach over and hold him by the collar, he was stopped. Deadass by thin air. His bewildered eyes drew a chuckle from the owner, who rised from his seat and sat onto his desk, crossing his legs elegantly and leaning close to Hyuk's face. 

"Calm down there. Yes, I can. You walked in here for a job, and I gave you one." N gently poked the young man's chest and he was pulled down into a chair that definitely was not there before. He looked over his shoulder, Ravi looking down at him stoicly as he held him down with a hand. "Now, let me explain. My shop is not just one of your shabby, plain little cafes you'd come across anywhere. This is a special place. I hope you understand that if you ever plan to quit or run away, it won't end very well for your memories." N's smile turned into a grin, and he waved Ravi away. "Get back on the floor so our beloved customers don't start a riot. Take Ken with you. I'm sure Hongbin could use some help in the kitchen." The brunette groaned at the mention of the kitchen as he was towed away by Ravi, but he managed to wave a little goodbye towards Hyuk before they stepped out of the office. 

"What do you mean, 'for my memories'? What are you going to do, brainwash me?" Hyuk almost snorted, but quite frankly he was a little too intimidated by all the strange things that were already happening to be that indignant. His throat went dry when he saw N's sly smile widen. "... What the hell are you?"

"I wouldn't be so rude to your boss if I were you, Hyukkie... Just relax and listen to me." He waved a finger, and Hyuk could swear he saw a cup of tea fly and land in front of him on the table. How- "Don't worry, you're not going insane." N interrupted his thoughts. "I happen to be a huge fan of... witchcraft. It's really not as ominous as it sounds, I don't do anything occult. That's Hongbin's job." He giggled and pointed at the door. "Once you step out of this door, you'll find that your eyes have gained a cute little ability to basically see what you couldn't before. Don't get too scared, you're going to have to get used to it for this job... I'm sure that's going to be no problem for a big guy like you." Hyuk shivered and glanced where the man pointed, his imagination going insanely wild thanks to N's unsettling words. "So, now that you understand, go get 'em!" Another wave of his hand pulled Hyuk up from the chair and the air escorted him to the door as it swung open.

The once empty cafe had been filled with tables of quiet guests, and the closer Hyuk looked, the more unsettling everything seemed. A glance at the clock told him it had only been fifteen minutes or so since he passed out. The door swinging shut behind him made him jump, attracting some attention from the customers. The feeling of a hand pulling at his own made him look down, seeing a small girl with- where the fuck were her eyes?! "Are you new here, uncle?" Oh, they were there, they were just pitch black and creepy. Since when did children wear sclera lenses? 

"I, uh... Yes, actually, I'm the new waiter in training. My name is Hyuk... what's yours?" Before the girl could answer, Ravi's approaching figure stopped her and gently took her hand into his own. "Not now, Haeun, let's go back to your dad." She protested but to no avail, leaving with the waiter while Hyuk watched on in confusion. He let out a breath he had been holding, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes. He must be dreaming, this was all too strange. What in the world did N mean by being able to see things he hadn't seen before? Head in his hand, he slumped over to follow Ravi to at least ask where he could get his uniform and when his shifts would start, and he poked into the kitchen to check if this was where they had gone. There were a total of four men working inside, two of who also had pitch black eyes... Just what were they? 

"Daddy, I'm bored!" Haeun whined up at someone with short, wavy black hair, his fringe just ending above his big, seemingly normal brown eyes. "Can I please go play with uncle Leo?" She was responded with a nod and a dimpled smile, the child cheering and skipping off to another door that was towards the back of the kitchen. That was his daughter?! The man's eyes landed on him, widening and blinking in surprise. 

"Oh, hello! Customers aren't allowed back here-"

"That's our new waiter in training!" Ken interrupted with his loud, happy voice as he flipped an omelette onto a plate. "His name is Hyuk! Hyuk, meet Hongbin, he's the patisserie!" So this was the occult guy? Hongbin nodded in a greeting to the younger, flashing his bright smile for good measure. Seems pretty normal though...

"I'm just someone who happens to bake, don't fall for Ken's fancy titles. Where's your uniform?" As Hyuk explained that he was looking for it as well as his work schedule, Hongbin went over to wash his hands and wipe them off. "Follow me then, I'll take you to our break room. You can leave your clothes there though, I'm assuming N hired you on the spot so you'll literally have to start working like... now, I guess." He chuckled apologetically and led the college student into the door his daughter had entered just moments before. "Haeunnie, don't exhaust uncle Leo before his performance." The little girl had climbed onto the shoulders of a very long physiqued and grey haired man who turned around slowly with a strangely blank expression. Hyuk stopped in his tracks when he noticed Leo's bright yellow eyes. 

".....?" Leo tilted his head at Hongbin for an explanation, who told him what he knew. He then approached Hyuk with Haeun and held out his hand quietly. 

"Uh... hi?" Hyuk received no verbal answer, only a nod of acknowledgement. So far, he had met a witch, a mere waiter with a strong ass grip, a bubbly chef, a baker with a daughter, and a mute man... What the hell kind of establishment was this? Hongbin dropped a pile of clothes into his arms, mumbling something about his size, and he was left alone to change while the three gave him some privacy. The uniform was identical to Ravi's, a crisp white shirt with a navy blue waistcoat that was lined with gold. They were complete with simple black slacks and a black bowtie. The size was just right, but Hyuk felt a little mismatched since he was wearing his old pair of white sneakers. He remembered N had said something about buying new shoes... Hyuk stepped out of the break room and was met with a whistle of admiration from Ken. 

"Oh man, you're gonna have to get new shoes." Ken held out a plate of steaming alfredo pasta, the smell almost making him drool. "Here's your first errand~ Send this out to the table by the second window. It's a woman with long, blonde hair. She's a regular here, so you better memorize her orders." Hyuk was gently pushed out of the kitchen, his eyes frantically glancing about to find the table. He let out a sigh of relief when he spotted her, being the only blonde in the room, and walked as smoothly as he could over with her order. 

"Excuse me, ma'am, your pasta..." He trailed off, unsure of what to say and feeling nervous as she turned to face him. Her eyes caught him off guard, gleaming with the same yellow that reminded him of Leo. She smiled and thanked him as he set her plate down. 

"Are you new?" Her voice was high and gentle. "That's so exciting, they've never hired a normal human before!" He blinked at her words, immediately reminded that he was likely no longer surrounded by normal people. "I'm Chungha, it's nice to meet you~" 

"Hyuk... I was told that I should memorize your orders since you're a regular." That made her laugh quietly, shaking her head and waving over at the kitchen window where Ken greeted back with an energetic flail of his arm. 

"He's just playing with you, I don't have usuals. I do come here a lot though." Hyuk stifled a sigh and glared towards Ken who stuck his tongue out and went back to work. He excused himself so she could dine and snuck over to where Ravi was pouring wine at another table, noticing a small platform with a white grand piano. 

"Do you guys have performances here?" Ravi glanced behind him at Hyuk's question and nodded. 

"Only by Leo. He's our singer." 

"I thought he was mute?" 

"Nah, he just doesn't like talking much." Hyuk felt more and more cheated by the minute and shook his head to himself. Leo's grey hair caught his eye as the man suddenly appeared from the shadows, taking a seat at the piano in a stylish maroon suit. The cafe was soon filled with gentle playing, all eyes drifting towards Leo as he lulled them calmly into his first song, eyes closed serenely. Even Hyuk was almost pulled into a trance, only being reminded that he was supposed to be working by Ravi who gave Leo a small glance of appreciation before leading the younger to start teaching him what he needed to know. It was all fairly easy, nothing that Hyuk couldn't manage, until he was led to a table of a man with literal horns growing out of his forehead. 

"Y-your champagne... sir..." Had Halloween come early and Hyuk wasn't informed? The man's red eyes gave him a once over, and he grinned in a friendly manner. Hyuk quickly excused himself and rushed back into the kitchens to hide, clutching at his chest as he felt the terror subside and leaving his heart pounding. "Who is that?!" He asked Hongbin, who was busy kneading dough. "I-it's like he's a devil, he had HORNS, his eyes were literally bright red, I feel like if I had stayed for another second he would have just sucked the soul right out of me!" 

"Oh, you mean Yongguk? He's really nice, don't worry." 

"Nice?!"

"Yeah, he just tends to have that effect on people. If you get used to it he's really just a nice dude." Hyuk nodded faintly, glancing back out the window and seeing the man chatting with Ravi. "By the way, have you seen Haeun somewhere out there?" He looked back at Hongbin and shook his head. 

"Oh yeah, she's your daughter, right?" He was surprised by the man shaking his head. "But she called you daddy..." 

"She doesn't know, but I don't have children. Technically anyway... I brought her and these two in." He gestured at the two other men with black eyes, working with the food. "They don't really know how they died, and I found their bodies and just naturally kind of adopted them I guess." 

"... dead bodies." Hyuk's eyes narrowed at Hongbin suspiciously, thinking that maybe this was just another joke. "So what are they, zombies?" He tried to laugh it off in a hushed voice, but his eyes widened when the baker nodded. 

"I mean, in a way they are. I brought them back to life just to test them out. I couldn't figure out how to undo that and I didn't want to kill them again so I had N hire them as kitchen staff. Haeun was genuinely too young to remember that she died, so she assumed I was her father. I can't bear telling her anyway..." 

"Woah, hang on. Test WHAT out?!" 

"Reanimation." Hongbin responded as if that was the most matter of fucking fact thing in the world.

"Are you out of your mind?!"

"I mean, that's definitely something I've heard since I was young." Hongbin chuckled, leaving Hyuk to stare at him in shock. "They aren't harmful. They don't eat brains or whatever, they're just basically corpses... with a mind of their own." Hyuk looked back at the two men who seemed to be normally moving around and doing their jobs. 

"You don't say... Wait, should I be looking for Haeun?" He cursed quietly when Hongbin nodded and rushed out of the kitchen, looking around for the little girl. He was relieved to find her sitting right next to Leo's piano, swaying along to the man's soft singing. 

"Where have you been? You know you can't just leave the floor like that unless there's an order to send out." Ravi's deep voice scared him from behind and made him turn his head way too fast for his neck's own good. "Here's something to do, go refill water for the tables." He was handed a large pitcher and escorted to the first table, gasping in shock when the occupant looked up to reveal LITERALLY no eyes in his sockets. "Don't be so rude, he can still hear. Sorry, new guy. It's nice to see you again, Kai." Ravi greeted him as if he were an old friend, reaching out to give his hand a little brotherly slap. 

"I mean, it would be nice to see you again, but y'know." Kai laughed at his own pathetic joke and waved towards Hyuk. "Hey, newbie. Has Ravi been giving you a hard time?" Hyuk shook his head meekly before remembering the guy can't see, and responded with a quick no. "Well that's good. Don't be fooled by his looks, he's a real softie." Ravi protested with a small noise.

"As if you'd know what my looks are." He teased and excused them both, leading Hyuk back to the bar where he generally was. "So, now you know there's demons and such here, but Kai's different. He's basically a ghost. Been a customer since he died." Ravi looked at Hyuk as if expecting an answer before continuing. "He can't find his way to the other side until he finishes what he needs to do here, but that's really all I know." 

"What happened to him...?"

"His ex was kind of a bitch... and by that I mean she was a total psycho. Gouged his eyes out because she thought he was cheating on her."

"What the fuck?!"

"I know right? She somehow got away from the police, and he definitely wasn't her first victim. I'd fuck her up myself, but..." Ravi sighed and shook his head in dismay, bending down to get a few ingredients for an order of a blue martini. Hyuk watched the man shake up the cocktail for a while until he finally asked the one question that was pushing for an answer.

"So... am I the only human here?" Ravi slowly looked up, his glasses glinting from catching a nearby table candle as a mysterious smirk crossed his lips. Had his eyes always been an icy grey?

"Yes."


	3. what are you, demons?

"So you are... a necromancer." 

Hongbin burst into breathless laughter, causing Sanghyuk to jump and wonder if he had just unknowingly cracked a joke. He pouted and sighed, shaking his head at his plate of food. He had been given a break so he could put something in his stomach after Ravi heard it complaining in symphonies of growls, and the man handed him over to the kitchens to give him a small meal. 

"That's way too cool of a title for me, Hyuk." Hongbin's wide grin of amusement never left his face as he started beating some eggs. "I'm honestly just a normal guy." 

"Yeah... Yeah, I believe that, a normal guy. Who has three children of the dead." Hyuk dodged the whisk that was brandished at him playfully with a laugh. He was getting used to the insanity that went on in the cafe. The staff and customers have also gotten used to him, and a month had passed by in a whirlwind along with many, many broken plates and wine glasses. He had no idea that Hongbin could be so terrifying when he was mad... he drove out a poltergeister who had been playing pranks on Haeun, scaring the poor girl (even though you'd think with a life in this cafe she wouldn't bat an eye) and driving the staff insane with her constant crying. All Hyuk could say was he was glad all he got were threats with a whisk. 

"They are not my children! Well, Haeun kind of counts, but if you ever tried to say I was the father of those two-" The whisk pointed at the two busy adult corpses who were being bossed around by Ken. "Then that would be a huge reach. I'm only 26 you know." Hyuk gasped in pretense of shock and then laughed at his own antics. "I'm honestly just a normal guy." Hyuk raised a skeptical brow at the older man. "Don't sass me, Sanghyuk, I'm serious!"

"How do you expect me to believe you're a normal dude when you work in this place and literally bring the dead back to life?" Sanghyuk's eyes travelled back to the two corpses, almost habitually by now as he continued to look at how the bodies functioned. It really was like they had a mind of their own. "And why did you even start working here?" 

"Oh, it's a long story... I mean I guess not that long. About five years ago when I first started to figure out the whole corpse thing, I was also trying to get find a job just about anywhere, but it was a little hard since the only thing I was good at was gaming, baking, and reanimation." Strange combination of skills, but Sanghyuk learned to not question anymore after the first week. "Being as young as I was, my naivety got the best of me and let's just say I accidentally unleashed a few walking dead and lost them... It got all over the internet, I think I kind of caused a nationwide panic." Hongbin chuckled sheepishly. "It was actually N who approached me first. Mind you, I was about to punch him in the face when he came up to me, the guy literally popped out of nowhere while I was walking home. He asked me if I was the one responsible for certain articles online about zombie sightings, and I thought he was some type of wannabe detective guy or journalist or even a stalker. So I tried to punch him in the face." Hongbin cracked a wide grin at the memory, remembering how panicked he had felt when he thought that someone had found out his secret. "He disappeared, unsurprisingly, before I could get to him, and I made a run for it. When I got home, I found out that the fucker had slipped a note into my pocket that had the address of this place and a little message from him. You know what it said?" Sanghyuk shook his head, leaning closer as he chewed on his chicken. "He wrote, 'If you fail to show up tomorrow evening at 5 pm, you're fired.' I thought it was some joke, so I threw it away. You know what happened next?" Sanghyuk shook his head, leaning even closer as he took a mouthful of pasta. "It reappeared in my pocket. I figured I had nothing to lose, so I showed up at 5, got the job, and here we are." And Sanghyuk's focus had already shifted by the time he finished his little story.

"So he IS a witch!" Hongbin rolled his eyes and nodded as he started piping out cookie batter. 

"You've been here for a month and you still haven't figured that out?" 

"Hey, it's not my fault that I never see him outside of his office, I don't see all his hocus pocus shit!" Hongbin cackled. "What's his story then? He's the owner isn't he?" Sanghyuk wondered if he was asking too many questions considering N seemed like the most mysterious figure in this strange gang of... people? Hongbin sighed, setting the piping bag down and leaning his hands on the kitchen counter.

"Sanghyuk. I know this sounds super cliché, but I wouldn't go around asking about him if I were you." Sanghyuk blinked, not expecting the sudden seriousness in Hongbin's tone. He slowly nodded in understanding, though that damn curiosity of his was already pulling at his tongue. Hongbin seemed to notice immediately so he sighed and slid the baking tray into the oven and shut the door. "I'm just going to warn you that the last part timer did exactly what you shouldn't do. He snooped around for information about N." Hongbin paused almost uncomfortably before continuing, "His existence is now wiped out completely." Chills ran down Sanghyuk's spine and he put down his chicken pasta.

"By wiped out completely... you mean..."

"His family has no recollection of who he was, nor do his friends, exes, teachers, you get the point. He no longer exists in this world. He was sucked into the void. So if you cherish your own existence then I really suggest you don't ask too many questions. And... I know he never told you this, but you aren't gonna be able to quit unless you let him erase your memory of this place. You'll have to forget all of us. It's for our own safety." Hongbin washed his hands and sat across Sanghyuk again, grabbing his glass of iced matcha latte. "We can't risk having normal humans know about this place. It's a safe haven for most of us. For me, Haeun, Ravi, Leo, and Ken... That's what N wanted to make." 

Silence was shared between them as they sat in the hustle and bustle of Ken and the corpses' cooking before Hyuk asked another brave question. 

"What about Ravi and Leo? And Ken? Is it okay if I ask what they are?" To his surprise, Hongbin nodded with a small smile. 

"You won't have to worry about your existence over them. Ravi is kind of hard to explain... he's kind of a shape shifting creature slash demon. That ring on his right hand keeps him in his human form. You do not want him to take it off... He shifts into what people fear the most, and depending on the form he may be able to kill or eat you... sometimes both. The weird thing about him is he has human intelligence, which is apparently close to non-existent among his kind. He told me himself that N found him about three centuries ago, and he gave him the ring to grant him the human body he had always wanted. N took interest in his intelligence, and they've traveled to many places together. I believe he helped N start up this business. They've been running it for almost a century now." 

Sanghyuk's brows raised in surprise and his eyes wandered around the kitchen, wondering if N simply used his witchcraft to keep the place intact. "So... they're more than three centuries old? That's impossible to imagine... Are you the only other human here? What about Ken?" They both looked over at the bubbly blonde (he had bleached his hair last week), who was cursing loudly to himself when he nearly sliced his hand open with a potato peeler. 

"Hey, Ken, tell Hyuk what you are." Hongbin called to get his attention and got back up to work, giving Sanghyuk a firm but friendly pat on the shoulder. Ken looked over with a half peeled potato in hand, his hair a mess and his cheek splotched with some type of tomato sauce. 

"Hyukkie! You don't know what I am?!" Ken exclaimed, sounding highly offended. "Well, what do you I look like to you?" He stood there for a good ten seconds, chucking the potato onto the cutting board and posing handsomely for the uni student. 

"A fool, not gonna lie." Sanghyuk laughed gleefully as he dodged a flying potato. He jumped when he heard a high pitched yelp from behind, and when he turned, there was Leo with a hand over his forehead, potato on the ground in front of his feet. "Oh shit-- Sorry, Leo! I should have just caught that, are you okay?" Leo gave him a silent glare, though the pout on his lips defeated whatever maliciousness was meant to be in his eyes. Leo would never say it out loud, but he had also grown fond of their current part timer. 

"Ken. Two chicken pastas." Leo requested quietly, and then he was gone. This made the blonde groan as he pulled out the pasta noodles. 

"I swear, he could have just made that himself since he's on break. Why do I have to do all the work around here?" Ken shook his head to himself and sighed, mumbling something about lovebirds wanting to spend as much time together as possible before he remembered that he had been having a conversation with Sanghyuk. "Oh yeah, so I'm an Unseelie. See?" He brushed back a bit of his hair to show Sanghyuk his sharp tipped ears. The younger had seen them sometimes but he had assumed that Ken was perhaps an elf. 

"... Like... a dark fairy?" Ken shrugged.

"I mean sure, I'll take that."

".... Have you ever kidnapped travelers?" 

"Oh lord, no! Never! Which is why I'm here! My troop did, which I did not agree with, so they exiled me into the unknown realms until N and Ravi picked me up." 

"... Hang on, I'm lost, the what realms?" Ken turned to looked at him and shook his head, dismissing the subject.

"You're a human so you don't need to know. I was basically disowned because I refused to harm humans, and I guess N took pity on me and brought me here. He taught me to cook, you know?" Ken smiled widely and threw some strips of chicken into the frypan. Sanghyuk had already finished his plate but the smell was still incredibly enticing. "Yeah, he taught me all the skills as a chef. I didn't really think I would ever become one in this lifetime but I guess that somehow worked out." Sanghyuk nodded slowly as he processed all this new information into his brain, feeling like he had truly and stupidly walked into a whole fantasy world. Except it was all very, very real. 

"So N's a witch, Hongbin's a reanimator, Ravi is a shape shifter, you're an Unseelie... my brain hurts. Oh, what about Leo? Is he some type of demon? Or an angel? Do they exist?" Ken shook his head at every guess, and he turned around slowly for extra dramatic effect. 

"Leo is... an incubus. Dundundunduuuuun..." Sanghyuk ignored the dramatics and quietly went 'Ohhh' to himself as he stood up to wash his dish, making Ken pout. 

"So that's why his voice is so hypnotic! I thought it was weird how almost everyone just drops everything whenever he performs. Wait, but doesn't that mean he has to f-" Ken screeched and flew his hand out to cover Sanghyuk's mouth. 

"He's fine, he's got Ravi, and he hates it when people talk about that." Hongbin popped in helpfully to explain before Ken could. Hyuk pull away from Ken and asked more questions.

"He's got Ravi? Wait, they're a thing?! Is that why they always stick close to each other?" 

"They basically feed off of each other's energy, Leo doesn't actually need much to sustain. Although," Hongbin cringed, "I won't say anything about what goes on in private." Hyuk let out a small giggle. "Ravi was the one who found him. They were practically inseparable ever since they met. Leo was basically starving himself for certain reasons he won't say and he collapsed right at our doorstep, but I think Ravi managed to change his mind." 

"They're honestly the worst. Flaunting their love around everyone." 

"They do not flaunt it, Ken, you're just jealous because Ravi no longer calls you cute." 

"I am NOT JEALOUS!" 

Hyuk sighed and shook his head to himself, deciding that it was time to get back to the front and do his job. "Alright, well I'm gonna leave you two alone." They completely ignored him as they started teasing each other back and forth, and Sanghyuk sighed again. Looks like tonight was going to be a long night.


End file.
